Shield for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation



June 16, 1964 M. E. GREEN 3,137,293

SHIELD FOR MOUTH-T0-MOUTH RESUSCITATION Filed April 18. 1961 INVENTOR MATTHIAS E. GREEN BY ATTOR EY United States Patent 3,137,293 SHIELD FOR MOUTH-TO-MOUTH RESUSCITATION Matthias E. Green, 745 E. 5th St., Salem, Ohio Filed Apr. 18, 1961, Ser. No. 103,772 1 Claim. (Cl. 128-29) This invention relates'to the art of artificial respiration, and more particularly to apparatus for administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. It is now recognized that, in many rescue attempts, manual methods of manipulating the victims body to restore oxygen to the victim are inadequate to ventilate the victims lungs to the extent necessary to effect a recovery. Consequently it is now widely preferred that the power and substantial capacity of the rescuers lungs be utilized to rapidly deliver large volumes of air under sufiicient pressure for adequate lung inflation of the victim, and hence there is more and more admonition to use the mouth-to-mouth method. In such method it is only necessary to place the victim on his back, open his mouth (making sure that his tongue is not lodged in the air passage to be used) and proceed immediately to evenly blow a deep breath into him. In the case of drowning, particularly, the victims very immediate need is oxygen, and since the time required to supply the oxygen is at an absolute minimum when mouth-to- 3,131,293 Patented. June 16, 1964 ice The material of the plate 12is preferably'a clear thermoplastic for ease of forming and for ease of inspection as to its sanitary condition. Plate 12 has a centrally disposed aperture 11. A second and similar curved plate is provided as shown at to fit snugly about the mouth I and forward portions of the cheeks of the rescuer. Plate 1 of curvature of the plate 12. Such flattened end portion mouth resuscitation is administered, dramatic rescues have been effected by this method.

Notwithstanding the widely recognized advantages of the above-mentioned direct resuscitation method, many would-be rescuers are understandably reluctant to employ the method because of the intimate personal contact required and the ofttimes repulsive condition or appearance device for the purpose outlined above which is so designed and constructed that when in use the rescuers head is at right angles to the victims head so that the rescuer is in the most comfortable and proper position, armwise, to keep the victims mouth open, close the victims nostrils, loosen clothing, manipulate the victim to expel water and prevent stomach distention, etc.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following specification and the accompanying drawing wherein there is disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Referring now to the drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of shield constructed in accordance with the invention; and

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the shield of FIG- URE 1, shown in position on a victims mouth.

In the drawing, reference numeral 12 designates an elongated plate of plastic material which is rounded at its corners and which is curved in a wide are about a transverse axis to snugly fit over the mouth and forward part of the cheeks of a victim as illustrated in FIGURE 2.

a resuscitating principles of my 10 likewise has a centrally disposed aperture 13.

Received and bonded withinthe apertures 13 and 11 of the plates 10 and'12, respectively, is the cylindrical portion 14 of a tube 15 which, as shown, extends into the concavity of the plate 12 but which terminates at its other end at the inner or concave surface of the plate 10. It should be noted particularly that the plates 10 and 12 are arranged with their convex surfaces facing each other but with their axes of curvature arranged in ofiset relation and normal to each other. This relative positioning is, of course, maintained by the tube 15 which is rigidly bonded in the apertures of the plates 10 and 12 by a suitable cement or other bonding agent.

That portion of the tube 15 which is housed within theconcavity of the plate 12 is flattened so that its cross sectional shape is elongated in a direction normal to the axis is shown at 16. Plate 10 and tube 15 are prefer'ably'made of the same thermoplastic material as is the plate 12.

In. using the device described above the victim is, of

course, first placed on his back, his mouth opened, and

care is taken that the tip of his tongue is positioned in the lower forward portion of his mouth as indicated at 17 in FIGURE 2 of the drawing. The device may now be placed in and on the victims mouth, and it should be noted particularly that the tube 15 not only prevents the victim from closing his teeth or mouth but also holds the victims tongue depressed to prevent the same from sliding around and blocking the air passage leading to his lungs. The rescuer can now immediately deliver a quantity of air under pressure by placing his mouth and face against the shield plate 10,.and it should benoted that the rescuer is at right angles to the victim and has his hands free to close the victims nose, loosen clothing, and to be prepared to apply pressure to the victims midritf immediately upon completion of an inflow of air to aid in the victims exhalation. The shield remains in and on the victims mouth during such exhalation so that immediately upon the rescuer having recharged his lungs the rescuer can very readily re-establish the inflow path. Of

course, the curved nature oftthe shield plate 10 facilitates this re-contact which is important under the stress and excitement of rescue attempts.

-It should now be apparent thatI have provided an improved device for facilitating mouth-to-mouth resuscitation which not only overcomes the understandable eflicient air transfer passage is provided. It is very easy for the rescuer to exert his full lung pressure against the plate 10 and through tube 15, and the curvature of the plate 12 together with thetube 15 serves to keep the device in proper position on the victim so that the rescuer may apply air in proper rhythm and without loss of time or motion. Further, the rescuers hands are free for the best administration of the overall rescue attempt.

Having thus' described my invention, what I claim is:

A shield for use in mouth-to-mouth resuscitation com- I 3 prising a pair of elongated plates each curved about a transverse axis spaced outwardly from the normal plane of the plate and each having rounded corners and a centrally disposed aperture, said plates being smooth on their concave surfaces and being so dimensioned and shaped as to fit on the faces of the victim and the rescuer about their mouths and outside their lips in substantially airtight relation with said faces, an air-conducting tube rigidly received in each of said apertures and operative to retain said plates in assembled relation, said plates being 10 arranged with their convex surfaces facing and closely 7 adjacent to each other and so oriented that said axes are ofiset but normal with respect to each other, and said tube extending'into the concavity of one of said plates with said extension being flattened in a direction whereby the cross-sectional shape thereof is elongated in a direction normal to the axis of curvature of the said one of said plates, and said tube being operative to depress the tongue of the victim References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

